Tag Archives: sin

This Challenge makes the point that we can make a choice to honor God even if difficult situations. Joseph was sold into slavery by his own brothers, but he was such a trustworthy slave, that Potiphar put him in charge of everything in the house. When Joseph was accused by Potiphar’s wife and thrown into prison, the prison warden soon put everything under Joseph’s authority, because Joseph was so faithful in how he handled his responsibilities. Participants will plant flowers in a mixture of gravel and water jelly crystals to show that you can still bloom when you are in a bad place.

Scriptures

Genesis 37-50

John 4:10-14

Materials

Water Jelly Crystals – (You can order them from Steve Spangler Science for approximately $40 plus shipping and handling. (2.27 kg (5 pounds)
Item #: WSAC-900) Order early, because they may take up to two weeks to receive. It’s important that the crystals are clear and not colored. You can find these crystals at http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/product/1283.

Challenge Card (The file for printing is called, “JJ – Bloom Where You Are Planted – Challenge Card (CHALLENGE),” and it can be found on the Lesson and Material Downloads page at www.teachingthem.com. This can be printed in black and white on regular paper. There are two Challenge Cards per page.)

Small, potted flowers (preferably seedlings with some leaves but before they bloom, but this is flexible) – 1 per person

Small, clear, plastic cups – 1 per person

Gravel – enough to fill each plastic cup about ¾ full

Ziplock bags – gallon size – 1 per group

Scoops or large plastic spoons – 1 per group

Gallon jug of water – 1 per group

Preparation

Divide the water jelly crystals evenly so that you have the same amount for each group, and place them in Ziplock bags.

Add a scoop or large plastic spoon to each bag for scooping out crystals.

Add enough plastic cups for each person in each group.

Divide the gravel evenly among the groups, and put it into a bag or some other container for each group.

Set aside enough flowers for each person in each group.

Print out the Challenge Card document.

Cut the Challenge Card document in half (each half is identical), and put one in each Ziplock bag (one per group).

Practice the script.

Procedure

Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):

“We’re going to do a group Challenge today.”

“It’s called, “Bloom Where You Are Planted” and it’s part of the Joseph’s Journey Series.”

“First, I’ll need to divide you into groups.” (Divide the participants into the number of groups for which you have prepared kits.)

“Each group will have a Ziplock bag with a Challenge Card, cups, water jelly crystals, and a scoop or spoon.”

“Each group will also have some flowers, gravel and water.”

“When I tell you to go, open your Ziplock bags, and read the Challenge Card.”

“You will then take the small seedlings out of their planter and shake off the soil so that all you have is the plant with exposed roots.”

“This represents Joseph, who was taken out of the good soil of his home and family.”

“Next, take a handful of gravel rocks and a handful of water jelly crystals, and mix them together.”

“Then, put them into your clear, plastic cup.”

“This represents the bad soil that Joseph was planted in when he was sold into slavery by his brothers and then again later when he was thrown into prison for something he didn’t do.”

“Plants can’t usually grow in rocks, because they need nutrients from the soil and something to hold the water when it rains.”

“That’s why we added water jelly crystals. They hold water and help the roots to get the refreshing water that they need to grow.”

“So here’s the secret reason why Joseph was able to continue to grow even though he was in a bad place.”

“God was with him.”

“The water jelly crystals represent God’s presence in Joseph’s life.”

“Plants need normal water to thrive, but people need LIVING WATER, which is God’s Word and presence, to thrive.”

“Jesus says in John 4:10 that we can ask Him, and he will give us living water.”

“Then, He says in John 4:13-14 that ‘Everyone who drinks (regular) water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water (Jesus) gives them will never thirst. Indeed, the water (Jesus) gives them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’”

“That means that if you depend on Jesus, you will have eternal life with Him in heaven.”

“Put your finger into the gravel and water jelly crystals and make a hole for the seedling to be planted in.”

“Then, plant the seedling in the gravel, and move the gravel and water jelly crystals around the root.”

“Finally, add some water to about halfway up the cup.”

“Now, let’s set these aside. We’ll watch them during the week (or weeks) to see if they thrive in their new soil. They may even bloom!”

(When you are finished, have them answer the Debrief Questions below (also on their Challenge Cards. The Rhyme Time is a reinforce to help them remember that if they continue to trust God, He will make even difficult situations a blessing for them.)

Debriefing Questions

Do you think the flower will bloom where you planted it? Why or why not?

This object lesson teaches about how God’s permissive will works with God’s unchangeable will. It uses the stories of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and his brothers to illustrate how God allows us to make choices but brings even our bad choices and sin into alignment with his perfect will in the end.

Scriptures

Genesis 2:16-17; 37-50

Numbers 23:19

Deuteronomy 30:15-20

Joshua 24:14-15

1 Samuel 15:29

Malachi 3:6

Romans 8:28

Hebrews 6:17

James 1:17

Materials

One red rope – about 15-20 ft long

Five ropes (any color other than red) – about 15-20 ft long each

Printout of the file, “JJ – God’s Permissive Will – Choices Cards (OBJ LESSON).” It can be found on the Lesson and Material Downloads page at www.teachingthem.com. This can be printed in black and white on regular paper.

Cut each of the pages in half down the line in the middle to make 70 separate Choice Cards.

Put ropes in your bag

Put the clothespins in your bag so that you can carry them during your lesson.

Put the Choice Cards in numerical order (the numbers are on each card) with #1 on top and all the rest following.

Clip or rubber band these cards together, and put them in your bag.

Practice the script.

Procedure

Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):

“God’s will is difficult to understand.”

“In some parts of the Bible, it says that God’s will never changes.” (Have volunteer(s) read one or more of the following Scriptures out loud: Numbers 23:19, 1 Samuel 15:29, Malachi 3:6, Hebrews 6:17, James 1:17.)

“But we know from other parts of the Bible that God allows us to have free will – meaning, He lets us make choices.” (Have a volunteer(s) read one or more of the following Scriptures out loud: Genesis 2:16-17, Deuteronomy 30:15-20, Joshua 24:14-15.)

“This is sometimes called ‘God’s permissive will,’ which means that God gives us permission to choose to do something different than His will.”

“These Scriptures make me wonder how God’s will can always stay the same even though we do things that are not in His will.”

“I’m going to show you how this all works.” (Ask for two volunteers. Give them each one end of the red rope, and have them stretch it out as far as it will go across the room.)

“Let’s say that this is God’s unchanging will.”

“It stays the same no matter what.”

“On this end, we have ‘Before time began,’ and on the other side, we have ‘Eternity.’”

“God’s will is outside of time. It was here before time began and will continue on after time ends.”

“This rope represents our free will.”

“There was a time in the Garden of Eden when God’s will and man’s free will were tied together.” (Tie the two ropes together near the ‘Before time began” end.)

“But that didn’t last long, because Adam and Eve chose to do something against God’s will when they ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.”

“Whenever people step away from God’s will by using their free will to do something wrong, it looks like this.” (Ask for another volunteer to come up and hold the “free will” rope away from the “God’s Will” rope. Leave the two ropes tied together, but have the volunteer just hold the rope a few steps away from the “God’s Will” rope.)

“That first sin was followed by many more, and I don’t have time to tell you about all of them.”

“Instead, I’ll focus just on one family – the family of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph.”

“I’m picking this family, because they are God’s chosen people, the ones He made a promise to bless.”

“The story started with God making a promise to Abraham. Abraham was old and didn’t have any children, but God promised to make him the father of many nations. His son Isaac was the child of that promise.”

“At this point, Abraham’s free will was lined up with God’s will, so the two ropes are together.” (Have volunteer who has the “free will” rope come back to the red “God’s will” rope and hold both ropes together. Pull out Choice Card #1 from your bag. Show it to the audience. Clip the two ropes together using a clothespin. Anytime a Choice Card says, ‘GOD’S WILL – BOTH ROPES’ at the bottom, clip the two ropes together.)

“Isaac grew up and got married. His wife Rebekah couldn’t have children, so he prayed for her. God answered his prayer and gave them two children, Esau and Jacob.”

“What do you think? Was Isaac’s free will still lined up with God’s will at this point?” (Listen to responses.)

“Sure it was! Isaac wanted what God wanted, and God blessed him with two children.” (Show Choice Card #2, and use the clothespin to clip the two ropes together.)

“Esau and Jacob fought with each other in their mother’s womb, and God told Rebekah that Jacob would one day rule over his brother Esau.”

“Do you think it God’s will that the babies fought in the womb?” (Listen to responses.)

“I don’t know for sure if babies know enough to use their free will, but let’s say that it could be possible.”

“That means that their free will separated from God’s will.” (Have ‘free will’ rope volunteer take a step away from the ‘God’s will’ rope so that the two ropes separate. Make sure he/she doesn’t pull hard on the rope and rip the Choice Cards that are already on it. Use a clothespin to clip Choice Card #3 to just the ‘free will’ rope. Draw out Choice Card #4, and show audience.)

“Jacob’s name in Hebrew means, ‘He deceives,’ and it’s a great name for Jacob. He was one of the trickiest people in the whole Bible. The first trick we know about is when he convinced his brother, Esau, to sell him the birthright of the firstborn son in exchange for a bowl of stew!”

“The birthright of the firstborn son was a special privilege given to the boy who was born first, and it made him the leader of the family when the father died. It also gave him twice the inheritance of the other children, so it was pretty important.”

“Now we know that God said Jacob would one day rule over Esau, but I’m pretty sure this is not how God planned for it to happen.”

“God didn’t need Jacob to trick Esau. God would have made His will come true without tricks.”

“So, this choice that Jacob made was definitely away from God’s will!” (Clip Choice Card #4 with a clothespin to just the ‘free will’ rope. If you have lots of participants, you could give the choice card to a volunteer and have him/her clip it and then stand by it to represent that choice. There will be 70 choices total, so you might have each volunteer represent several choices. Draw out the remaining Choice Cards in numerical order while telling the story of God’s chosen people. The cards are listed below for your reference along with important story elements.)

REBEKAH AND JACOB – Tricked Isaac into giving Esau’s blessing to Jacob (It wasn’t enough that Jacob stole the birthright from Esau; he felt he had to steal his blessing, too. (The blessing was a special gift from the father that helped a child to know what his or her future would be like.)) FREE WILL ROPE

ESAU – Threatened to kill his brother, Jacob (Esau was so mad when he found out, that he promised to kill Jacob as soon as their father died.) FREE WILL ROPE

REBEKAH – Tricked her husband, Isaac, into sending Jacob away to find a wife among her brother’s people (Now we know where Jacob learned to be so tricky. His mom was a trickster, too! She saved Jacob’s life by sending him where Esau couldn’t get him. It’s good that she saved Jacob’s life, but she didn’t trust God to help. Instead, she told a lie. That’s away from God’s will.) FREE WILL ROPE

GOD – Promised land to Jacob in a dream and told him that he would have many descendants (God met Jacob while he was running away and renewed the promise that He had made to Abraham and Isaac.) BOTH ROPES

JACOB – Fell in love with Rachel as soon as he saw her (When Jacob arrived at the land of his relatives, he saw a girl named Rachel and fell in love with her. God wants us to fall in love. This was lined up with God’s will.) BOTH ROPES

JACOB – Worked for Laban for seven years in order to marry his daughter, Rachel. (It was the custom for these people at this time that a man would pay a woman’s father for the privilege of marrying her. Jacob didn’t have any money or property, so he worked for seven years as payment. This was honorable behavior.) BOTH ROPES

LABAN – Tricked Jacob into marrying Rachel’s older sister, Leah (Jacob wasn’t the only tricky person. His uncle Laban wanted to marry his oldest daughter off before Rachel got married, so he tricked Jacob into marrying her. That’s definitely away from God’s will.) FREE WILL ROPE (have volunteer step away from ‘God’s Will’ rope to hold ‘free will rope’ and show the distance between the two. You might want to have them step in the other direction from the first time in order to make the best use of space.)

JACOB – Was angry with Laban but agreed to work for Laban for seven more years so that he could marry Rachel, too. (Jacob loved Rachel very much and still wanted to marry her, so even though he had been tricked, he agreed to work seven more years to pay for her hand in marriage. That’s pretty romantic, but the problem with it is that God doesn’t want us to marry more than one person. This is away from God’s will.) FREE WILL ROPE

LABAN – Tricked Jacob many times in order to make him keep working for him. (Laban wasn’t satisfied with having Jacob work for him for 14 years. Jacob was a talented shepherd, and Laban got rich while Jacob was taking care of his sheep.) FREE WILL ROPE

14. GOD – Blessed Jacob by giving him many herds and many children (12 sons and 1 daughter). (This is the beginning of God fulfilling His promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.) BOTH ROPES

15. RACHEL and LEAH – Competed with each other to see who could have the most sons for Jacob. (In their culture, they believed that you were more important if you had more sons. Leah was able to have six boys, but Jacob didn’t love her. He loved Rachel, but she couldn’t have children for many years until God finally let her have Joseph and Benjamin towards the end of her life.) FREE WILL ROPE

JACOB – Ran away from Laban. Laban chased him, but God warned Laban in a dream not to hurt Jacob. (I’m not sure if it was God’s will for Jacob to run away or not, but God protected Jacob, so we will say that this was lined up with God’s will.) BOTH ROPES

JACOB – Wrestled with God until God gave Jacob a blessing. (While Jacob was traveling back to the land his family lived in, and angel of the Lord (probably Jesus) came to earth and wrestled Jacob. Jacob wouldn’t let go until God blessed him.) BOTH ROPES

18. ESAU – Forgave his brother Jacob, because he had been very blessed by God over the years they were apart. (Jacob was worried about his brother still being mad at him, but he was surprised to find that Esau had totally forgiven him.) BOTH ROPES

SIMEON AND LEVI – Took revenge on people who hurt their sister, Dinah, by killing all the men in the town. (When Jacob settled his family in Shechem, a man hurt his daughter, Dinah. Her brothers took revenge by killing every single man in the town. Jacob never forgave his sons for what they did.) FREE WILL ROPE

GOD – Allowed Rachel to die giving birth to Benjamin, Jacob’s youngest child. (Sometimes God allows bad things to happen, and we don’t understand why. There are times when we find out later what God was doing, but we won’t know all God’s reasons for what He allows to happen. We just have to trust Him.) BOTH ROPES

JACOB – Loved Joseph more than any of his other children. (Because Joseph was the firstborn child of Rachel, the wife Jacob loved and because some of his other sons had disappointed him, Jacob showed favoritism to Joseph.) FREE WILL ROPE

22. JOSEPH – Told his father about the bad things his brothers had been doing. (Joseph saw his brothers do some pretty bad stuff, and he told his dad about it. I think it was the right thing to do, but it made his brothers really mad at him.) BOTH ROPES

23. JOSEPH’S BROTHERS – Hated Joseph because their father loved him more. (It was obvious to his brothers that Joseph was their dad’s favorite, so they hated him.) FREE WILL ROPE

24. JOSEPH – Had two prophetic dreams that showed he would one day rule over his family. (These dreams were from God, because they eventually came true.) BOTH ROPES

JOSEPH – Told his brothers about his dreams. (I think this was a mistake. Joseph might have been showing off to his family, and all it did was make them all angry with him and hate him more.) FREE WILL ROPE

JOSEPH’S BROTHER – Hated Joseph because of his dreams. FREE WILL ROPE

27. JACOB – Made a special coat of many colors for Joseph, because Joseph was his favorite. (This was another mistake. The coat was a special coat like the one rulers would wear. It was a coat for people who didn’t have to work, and it made Joseph’s brothers hate him even more.) FREE WILL ROPE

28. JACOB – Sent Joseph to check on his brothers and bring him back a report. (And another mistake! Didn’t he realize how much his sons hated Joseph? The brothers were working, and Joseph was wearing his fancy, no-working coat. And Jacob sent Joseph to tattle on his brothers – not good!) FREE WILL ROPE

29. JOSEPH’S BROTHERS – Threw Joseph in a well and then sold him to some slave traders. (Joseph’s brothers were sick and tired of their little brother, and they decided to get rid of him.) FREE WILL ROPE

30. JOSEPH’S BROTHERS – Tore his robe and dipped it in blood. Then they let their father believe Joseph was killed. (They hid what they did by making Jacob think that Joseph had been eaten by a wild animal.) FREE WILL ROPE

31. MIDIANITES – Sold Joseph as a slave to Potiphar, the Egyptian and captain of the guard for Pharoah. (God is never happy when people are treated as slaves.) FREE WILL ROPE

32. JOSEPH – Served Potiphar faithfully and honored God. (Suffering can often change your heart, and I think Joseph grew up a lot when he was sold as a slave. During this time, he learned to trust God and do his best even in a bad situation.) BOTH ROPES

33. GOD – Was with Joseph and gave him success in everything that he did. (When we are lined up with God’s will, He blesses us and blesses us!) BOTH ROPES

34. POTIPHAR – Put Joseph in charge of everything in his household and trusted him with everything he owned. (Even people who don’t believe in God can be in line with God’s will sometimes. Potiphar was so impressed with Joseph that he gave him responsibility for everything.) BOTH ROPES

35. POTIPHAR’S WIFE – Tried to get Joseph to kiss her. (What?! She was married! Definitely not in God’s will!) FREE WILL ROPE

37. POTIPHAR’S WIFE – Lied about Joseph to her husband and said that Joseph tried to kiss her. (Oooh….she’s not a good person!) FREE WILL ROPE

38. POTIPHAR – Put Joseph in the prison where the king’s prisoners were kept. (It’s interesting that he put Joseph in this special prison for Pharaoh’s prisoners. That gave Joseph opportunities to meet important people. Still, Potiphar shouldn’t have put him in prison for something he didn’t do.) FREE WILL ROPE

39. JOSEPH – Served the prison warden faithfully and honored God while he was in prison. (Joseph was put into prison unfairly, but he still chose to trust in God and honor God by working hard.) BOTH ROPES

40. GOD – Was with Joseph and gave him success in everything that he did. (Again, when we line up with God’s will, He blesses us.) BOTH ROPES

41. THE PRISON WARDEN – Put Joseph in charge of everything and everyone in the prison. (Because Joseph was so trustworthy, the warden trusted him with everything. God was definitely at work.) BOTH ROPES

42. THE CUPBEARER and THE BAKER – Offended Pharaoh. (We don’t know what happened, but Pharaoh was mad at two of his top servants.) FREE WILL ROPE

43. PHARAOH – Put the cupbearer and the baker into prison. (It’s hard to know if Pharaoh was being fair or not, but God was going to use it.) BOTH ROPES

44. POTIPHAR – Assigned the cupbearer and the baker to Joseph. (Potiphar was in charge of the prison, and he apparently still had some trust in Joseph.) BOTH ROPES

45. THE CUPBEARER and THE BAKER – Both had dreams on the same night, but they were sad because they didn’t know what the dreams meant. (Sometimes God is the One who gives people dreams.) BOTH ROPES

46. JOSEPH – Noticed their sadness, asked to hear their dreams and then interpreted them. He asked the cupbearer to remember him when he returned to Pharaoh. (Joseph had interpreted his own dreams in the past and knew that God could interpret these dreams through him. In this case, Joseph told them that the cupbearer’s dream meant that Pharaoh would restore him again in three days and that the baker’s dream meant that Pharaoh would kill him in three days. Joseph asked the cupbearer to remember him and get him out of prison.) BOTH ROPES

47. PHARAOH – Restored the cupbearer and killed the baker, just as Joseph had predicted. (Exactly as Joseph had interpreted the dreams, the cupbearer went back to work, but the baker was killed.) BOTH ROPES

48. THE CUPBEARER – Forgot about Joseph for two years. (Not cool! Joseph got him free, and he totally forgot about Joseph.) FREE WILL ROPE

49. PHARAOH – Had two dreams that worried him. (These dreams were definitely from God. One was about seven fat cows that got eaten by seven skinny cows, and the other was about seven healthy heads of grain that got eaten by seven sick heads of grain.) BOTH ROPES

50. PHARAOH – Called all his magicians and wise men, but no one could interpret the dreams. (God was saving the interpretation for Joseph.) BOTH ROPES

51. THE CUPBEARER – Remembered Joseph and told Pharaoh about his ability to interpret dreams. (Finally!) BOTH ROPES

52. PHAROAH – Called for Joseph to come to interpret his dreams. (It’s just about to get really good!) BOTH ROPES

53. JOSEPH – Interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams and gave him advice about how to prepare for the coming famine. (Joseph didn’t take any of the credit for his ability. He gave it all to God, and he helped Pharaoh understand that the dreams meant there would be seven years of plenty of food followed by seven years of starvation.) BOTH ROPES

54. PHARAOH – Put Joseph in charge of all of Egypt, gave him his official ring, robes, chain and chariot and gave him a wife. (Pharaoh realized no one would do a better job than Joseph at saving the country, so he put him in charge of everything!) BOTH ROPES

55. GOD – Allowed a famine throughout all of the world. (A famine is a bad thing, but God allowed it to help many people stop believing in false gods and start believing in Him.) BOTH ROPES

56. JOSEPH – Managed the food in Egypt well so that no one had to starve during the famine. (God gave Joseph excellent management skills, and he saved so much food during the good years that there was plenty of food for everyone during the seven years of famine.) BOTH ROPES

57. JACOB – Sent Joseph’s brothers to Egypt to get food for the family. (It wasn’t just the people in Egypt who couldn’t grow food during the famine. People all over the world started coming to Egypt, because they were the only ones with food.) BOTH ROPES

58. JOSEPH – Recognized his brothers when they came to buy grain but didn’t reveal his identity. (Joseph knew that he had to test his brothers to make sure that they had changed.) BOTH ROPES

59. JOSEPH – Tested his brothers to see if his younger brother, Benjamin, was still alive. (First of all, Joseph was worried that his younger brother might have been killed or sold into slavery, so he made his brothers go and get him to bring him to Egypt.) BOTH ROPES

60. JOSEPH’S BROTHERS – Returned home to get Benjamin, but they had to leave Simeon, who was put into prison. (To make sure that they would come back, Joseph made them leave Simeon behind.) BOTH ROPES

61. JACOB – Didn’t want to let his sons take Benjamin, but he finally gave in when they got too hungry. (Jacob was afraid that the ruler (actually Joseph) in Egypt might keep Benjamin, so he didn’t want to let him go. In the end, though, they needed the food for survival.) FREE WILL ROPE

62. JOSEPH’S BROTHERS – Returned to Egypt with Benjamin and two times the money needed to pay for food. (They returned with twice the money, because Joseph had their money put back in their grain sacks before they left the first time. That shows that he had forgiven them. He didn’t want their money, and he didn’t want to get even.) BOTH ROPES

63. JOSEPH – Tested his brothers one more time to see if their hearts had changed. (Now that Joseph saw Benjamin, he was relieved, but he still wondered if his brothers were the same, evil people that they had once been, so he tested them one more time by sending them back with a silver cup hidden in Benjamin’s sack. After they had left, he sent his official to find out who “stole” his cup. He wanted to know if they would sacrifice Benjamin for their own safety.) BOTH ROPES

64. JUDAH – Offered to be Joseph’s slave if Joseph would just let Benjamin and the others go. (To Joseph’s surprise and joy, Judah offered to become a slave in order to free Benjamin. Judah was the brother who led the others to sell Joseph into slavery, but his heart had changed over the years.) BOTH ROPES

65. JOSEPH – Revealed his identity to his brothers and sent them back to get their father and bring him to Egypt. (When he was sure that his brothers had changed, Joseph told them who he was. They had dinner together, and he told them the whole story. Then, he sent them back to get the whole family.) BOTH ROPES

66. PHARAOH – Approved for Joseph’s family to live in the best part of Egypt. (Pharaoh trusted Joseph so much and was so grateful for his wise leadership that he gave Joseph’s family the best land in Egypt to live in.) BOTH ROPES

67. JACOB – Brought his whole family to Egypt. (70 people in all!) BOTH ROPES

68. JOSEPH – Reunited with his father and family and received his father’s blessing. (Jacob was so happy to see Joseph alive! The two had a great reunion.) BOTH ROPES

69. JOSEPH – Forgave his brothers for the terrible things they had done to him. (Joseph really forgave his brothers. In fact, he told them that he knew they meant to hurt him, but God allowed it to happen so that he could save many lives.) BOTH ROPES

70. MOSES – Led the Hebrews out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. (And that wasn’t the end of the story, because Jacob’s family lived in Egypt for 400 years. During that time, they were protected from the evil religions that were in the country of Canaan, where they had come from, and they were able to grow from 70 people to over 2 million. When the time was right and the Hebrews were ready, God sent Moses to lead them out of Egypt and back into the Promised Land of Canaan.) BOTH ROPES

CONCLUSION:

“Notice how often people in this story did their own free will apart from God’s will.”

“But also notice that God always brought events back in line with His will.”

“So here’s the answer to how God can allow us to have free will and sin but still accomplish His perfect will in the end…”

“No matter what these people did, God would take it and use it for His purposes.”

“Even when they sinned, He turned it around and made it work for good.”

“In the end, God brings everything in line with His will.” (Grab the end of the Free Will rope. Then go to the “eternity” end of the red rope, and pull on the Free Will rope until it straightens out right next to the red rope. This shows how God brings everything into alignment with His purposes in the end.)

“You’ve probably noticed that the ‘God’s Will’ rope is red. That’s to symbolize the blood of Jesus, that has the power to bring our Free Will into alignment with God’s Will.”

“Satan is a bigger trickster than Jacob, Rebekah and Laban put together, and he constantly tries to get us to pull away from God’s Will.” (Gently pull several of your volunteers back away from the red rope as they hold onto the “Free Will” rope.)

“But no matter what he tricks us into doing, God offers to help us line up with His will if we will just trust in the blood of Jesus.” (Pull the ropes together again.)

“When you accept Jesus’ sacrifice of His own life on the cross as payment for your sins, God brings everything in line with His will.”

“He will take all the bad and sinful choices you made and use them in a positive way.”

“He will take all the terrible things other people did to you and use them in a positive way.”

“And even though you can still make choices that take you away from God when you are a believer…” (Pull one of your volunteers and the “Free Will” rope away from the red rope.)

“If you ask God for forgiveness, He will bring those bad choices back into line with His will.” (Pull the ropes together again.)

“Romans 8:28 says that God will use ALL things for the good of those who love Him.”

“God is pretty amazing, don’t you think?” (Acknowledge responses, thank your volunteers and allow them to be seated.)

Time

This object lesson teaches about how difficult it can be for us to stay focused on following Jesus.

Scriptures

Philippians 3:12-14

Materials

A toy rocket or spaceship (or if you don’t have anything like that, improvise with a cardboard tube or just about anything else – the kids won’t mind)

One large ball (preferably yellow or orange)

Several smaller balls of varying sizes

Permanent marker

Index cards (one for each ball)

Tape

Bible

Preparation

Write the following words on different index cards, “SON,” “WORLD,” “Jealousy,” “Bitterness,” “Selfishness,” “Unkindness,” “Worry,” “Doubt,” “Foolishness,” “Pride,” “Fear,” “Greed,” “Ignorance,” or any others that you want to use. The only ones that are required are the “SON” card and the “WORLD” card.

Tape these cards onto different balls. The “SON” card should be taped to the largest ball.

Practice the script.

Procedure

Use the following script and instructions (or modify to suit your needs):

“Do any of you ever have trouble staying focused on following God?” (Acknowledge responses.)

“Me, too! It’s so hard to always do what is right and stay on the path toward Him.”

“We are kind of like a rocket ship heading toward the sun (but actually, we are headed to the S-O-N, because we won’t burn up when we reach Him!)” (Ask for enough volunteers to hold all the props you’ve brought – one for the rocket ship and one for each ball. Put the person holding the “SON” ball at one end of the room, and place the person with the “WORLD” ball and the person with the rocket ship at the other end of the room. Space those with the balls along either side of the path between the large ball and the rocket ship.)

“Before we know Jesus, we are stuck in the WORLD’s orbit.” (Guide the person with the rocket ship by the shoulders to make several orbits around the person with the “WORLD” ball.”

“But then, we catch a glimpse of the SON and decide we want to follow Him.”

“We break free from the WORLD’s orbit and start heading toward the SON.” (Guide the person with the rocket ship slowly toward the SON, but as soon as you get to the first person with a ball on the path, break off and orbit around that person.”

“Unfortunately, on the way to the SON, we get distracted by ________ (name whatever is printed on the card on the ball), and we go into orbit around it for a while.” (Keep going around this person.)

“The more times we go around _____________ (say what is on the ball again), the more we hate it, but it is soooooooo hard to break free from its gravitational pull!” (Keep going around this person.)

“We keep seeing the SON every time we pass around __________________ (say the name of the ball), and eventually, His power pulls us free of the orbit of the dead planet we have been circling.” (Break free and start back toward the SON.)

“Not everything is a temptation for us, so we will be able to pass some of these dead planets without any problem, but our Enemy, Satan, is not going to give us up without a fight.

“He will put a very tempting planet in our path, and sure enough, we will get distracted looking at it and get sucked into its gravitational pull!” (Guide the person with rocket to begin orbiting this new dead planet.)

“Even though the planet looked tempting from a distance, when we get close to it, we find that it is empty and lifeless. It doesn’t satisfy.”

“The SON won’t let us forget Him. We will see Him on every orbit, and eventually, He will pull us free from that dead planet and set us back on the path toward Him.” (Guide the person with the rocket to break away and head toward the Son.)

“This keeps happening over and over and over again. It’s very frustrating!” (Guide the person with the rocket to get sucked into one orbit and then break away and then get sucked into another orbit and so on….)

“But there is good news! The closer we get to the SON, the easier it gets to break free from these temptations.”

“We get stronger and stronger in our faith and our ability to resist temptation, and we stay longer and longer on the path toward the SON.”

“We just need to keep striving to reach the SON. Paul says in his letter to the Philippians, “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:12-14)

“Paul was saying that he doesn’t look back at what’s behind him; he just keeps straining toward what is ahead of him.”

“He keeps his ship pointed toward the SON, and when he gets off-course, he gets back on-course as soon as possible to follow the SON.”

“One day, it will be time, and the SON will bring us the rest of the way to Him when we join Him in heaven (or when He comes back to join us on earth). (Guide the person with the rocket ship to the SON and have him orbit the SON several times before ending the lesson.)

This game is a twist on the popular “Red Light – Green Light” game that kids often play. It’s high energy with a spiritual teaching point at the end.

Scriptures

Jonah 1:1-3

Hebrews 12:1-2

Materials

None

Preparation

Select a wide-open space to play the game.

Choose a highly-visible object or point to be the “Finish Line” and another place to be the “Start Line.”

Practice the script.

Procedure

Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):

“How many of you have played a game called ‘Red Light – Green Light’ before?” (Look for a show of hands.)

“Well, we’re going to play a game like that, but I’m going to change the rules just a little.”

“In ‘Red Light – Green Light,’ everyone starts at a starting line, and the person who is leading is far away.”

“The leader faces everyone and says, ‘Red Light!’ and everyone has to freeze right where they are.”

“If the leader sees anyone moving even a little, he can send them back to the start line.”

“But when the leader turns his back to everyone, he says, ‘Green Light!’ and everyone runs as far as they can toward him before he turns around again and says, ‘Red Light!’”

“The first person to reach the leader and tag him wins and gets to be the new leader for another round of the game.”

“So, those are the regular rules. Here are my new backward rules.”

“Instead of running toward the leader, you are going to run away from the leader.”

“The first person to reach the finish line will be the winner.” (Tell them what the finish line will be, and point out where everyone will start.)

“Does that make sense to everyone?” (Look for questions and respond.)

“Okay, the other rule is still the same.”

“When I’m facing you, I’ll call out, ‘Red Light!’ and everyone has to freeze right where they are.”

“But when I turn around, I’ll call out, ‘Green Light!’ and you can run like crazy!”

“Any questions?” (Respond to any questions.)

“Okay, I’ll be leader first.” (Position yourself in the middle of the “Start Line,” and have everyone line up on either side of you along the same line. Start by facing them. Then quickly turn around and yell out, “Green Light!” Don’t give them much time to run. Quickly turn back around, and yell, “Red Light!” If you see anyone still moving or even twitching (depending upon how strict you want to be with the rules), make them come back to the “Start Line.” Repeat this process until someone reaches the “Finish Line.” Then make that person the new leader. Run through several rounds of the game, and then bring everyone back for a debrief using the following questions.)

Debrief Questions & Discussion

“What did you think of the game?”

“Let’s pretend that the leader of the game is like God. How does the game compare to how some people act toward God?” (You are listening for someone to mention that people are often moving away from (even running away from!) God. Running away from God is the equivalent of sinning and putting distance in our relationship.)

“That reminds me of someone in the Bible who ran from the Lord.” (Have a volunteer read Jonah 1:1-3.)

“Jonah ran from the Lord. How did that work out for him?” (Listen for someone to mention that he was swallowed by a great fish for three days.)

“Not so well, right?”

“So, if the leader is God, what could the ‘Red Light!’ and ‘Green Light!’ represent for Christians?” (You are listening for someone to say that the red light is like when we feel God is watching us and we have to be on our best behavior. The green light is like when we pretend God isn’t watching and we can do whatever we want, even if it’s bad for us to do.)

“Do you think this is the way God actually acts toward us?” (Hopefully the kids will know that it is not the way God acts toward us.)

“So how DOES God act toward us? What’s different than the game?” (God is always watching over us. Even when we don’t feel close to Him, He hasn’t turned away from us. He never gives a “Green Light” to sin. And even though He always has a “Red Light” to sin, He isn’t trying to catch us doing something wrong. He is encouraging us to come running to Him and not away from Him.)

10. “We should keep our eyes on Jesus and throw off anything that might slow us down as we race toward Him.”

11. “So, let’s change the rules again, and this time, everyone see how fast you can get to God with no ‘Red Lights!’” (Choose someone to be the leader/”God,” and have the kids line up at the former “Finish Line,” which will now be the new “Start Line.” When the leader/”God” says, “Green Light!” everyone should race to see how fast they can reach and tag him. Instruct the leader not to give any “Red Lights.”)

This object lesson teaches that we should not try to cover up our sin but instead recognize that it has been covered by the blood of Jesus.

Scriptures

Psalm 32:1-5; 103:12

1 John 1:7

Materials

Foot air pump (like you use to pump up a bicycle tire)

Two large balloons (the same color)

Permanent marker with a wide tip

Piece of red felt or other fabric (at least 12”x12”)

Piece of dark blue felt or other fabric (at least 12”x12”)

Table

Tablecloth

Tape (duct tape is preferable)

Straight pin or push pin

Bible

Preparation

Set up the table at the front of the teaching area. Try to elevate it so that it will be above the eye level of your participants.

Place the tablecloth over the table so that it hangs down to the floor and prevents participants from seeing what is happening behind it.

Write the word, “SIN,” on one of the balloons (while deflated) in bold letters so that participants will be able to read it when you hold it up.

Put the other balloon on the nozzle of the air pump. You may want to tape it on to make sure that it doesn’t fly off when it gets some air in it.

Hide the air pump on the floor behind the table so that it cannot be seen.

Tuck the balloon that is attached to the nozzle underneath the tablecloth. If you can get it to stay in the middle of the table, that’s great. If not, you may need to tape the hose to the table. Make sure that participants won’t be able to see the bulge caused by the air pump nozzle and balloon.

Lay the pieces of fabric and the 2nd balloon close by for use during the lesson.

Practice the lesson so that you are sure the participants won’t be able to see what you are doing behind the table. (NOTE: if your air pump makes noise when you pump it, you might need to pump more slowly or oil the parts.)

Procedure

Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):

“All of us sin sometimes, right?” (Look for agreement. If you don’t get agreement, you can have a volunteer read Romans 3:23.)

“God is not surprised when we sin. He wants us to quickly admit it and start obeying Him again.”

“Unfortunately, what a lot of us do is we hide our sin from the people we love and even from God sometimes.”

“King David in the Old Testament was very close to God most of his life, but even he tried to hide his sin sometimes.” (Ask volunteer to read Psalm 32:1-5.)

“David had done something very bad. He had stolen something from a friend and then had his friend killed to hide what he had done.”

“For a long time after he did this terrible thing, he tried to hide it.”

“But then, a good friend of David’s – the prophet Nathan – came to David and told him that he knew AND GOD KNEW what David had done.”

“When David heard this from his good friend, He confessed his sin and asked for forgiveness. Then he wrote this Psalm.”

“Notice that he says, ‘When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night, your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer.’”

“David was saying that he was miserable the entire time he tried to hide his sin.”

“He was being eaten up on the inside even though he tried to pretend that everything was okay on the outside.”

“You see, many times when we sin, we are so afraid of what will happen if people find out that we try to hide it.”

“Sometimes we say that we hide the bad things we do and that it is like trying to ‘sweep them under a rug.’”

“Have you heard this expression before?” (Look for responses. If they haven’t heard it, explain that sweeping sins under the rug means that we try to hide them where people can’t see them – like sweeping dirt under a rug instead of really cleaning it up.)

“Let’s say that this balloon (show the balloon that isn’t attached to the foot pump) represents our sin.”

“When we are afraid of the punishment or consequences of our sin, we might try to ‘sweep them under the rug’ so that no one will be able to see our dirt, our filth.” (Lay the balloon on the table at about the same spot where the hidden balloon is. Then cover it with your ‘rug,’ which will be your dark blue piece of fabric.)

“But you know what happens when we try to hide our sins, to sweep them under the rug?” (Listen for responses.)

“They GROW!” (As you say this, begin to secretly pump air into the hidden balloon, letting it get bigger and bigger.)

“Sins are like mushrooms. They grow best in the dark.”

“When we hide our sins, Satan will tempt us to sin more.”

“He will try to get us to lie about our sins and to do even bigger sins to hide what we’ve already done – like when David killed his friend just so that he wouldn’t have to admit that he stole something from him.” (Keep pumping until the balloon is an impressive size under the dark fabric.)

“In darkness, our sins get bigger and bigger until they are impossible to hide.”

“Then, they start to show even though we’ve done our best to cover them up.” (Pump balloon a few more times, until it lifts the cover so high that the balloon is clearly visible to everyone in the room.)

“But you know what? God doesn’t want us to hide our sins. He wants us to confess them.”

“In our Bibles, God tells us that he doesn’t want our sins covered up – He wants them covered!”

“You see, Adam and Eve tried to cover up their sin by wearing fig leaves, and the ancient Hebrews tried to cover up their sin by sprinkling animal blood over the box (the Arc of the Covenant) that held God’s law.”

“But neither of these were good ways to cover sin.”

“Fig leaves are itchy, and animal blood only covered up the Hebrews’ sin for a short time.”

“So, God provided a better way to cover our sins. He sent His son Jesus.”

“When Jesus died on the cross, His perfect blood (perfect because Jesus never sinned) covered our sins for ever!” (Cover the dark blue fabric with the red fabric.)

“In fact, the blood of Jesus does more than just cover our sins; it cleans them.” (Have volunteer read 1 John 1:7.)

“How far do you think the east is from the west?” (Listen to responses.)

“It’s pretty far, since the east and the west will never meet.”

“The blood of Jesus first covers our sins, and then Jesus removes them completely.” (Use the pin to pop the balloon through the fabric.)

“Now we can understand what David says in his psalm.” (Have a volunteer read Psalm 32:1-2.)

“We are blessed when our sins are covered by the blood of Christ.”

“So don’t try to cover up your sins; if you believe that Jesus is your Savior, then He has already covered them with His blood, removed them as far as the east is from the west and forgiven them so that they won’t count against you.”

Description
This Quick Drama teaches that God wants to make us into the image of His Son, Jesus. We often think that we should do the work, but God is the only One who can successfully and permanently change us. Even though God wants to change us, He loves us like we are today. He also loves us too much to leave us that way. (This Quick Drama was inspired by God’s Chisel, written by The Skit Guys. It’s an excellent drama that you can find at http://www.skitguys.com/store/detail/188/. I wrote this one to appeal more to kids, but the original is the best.)

Script
Brad: [Enters with a mirror is his hand. He is admiring himself in the mirror. He also has a heavily loaded tool belt and is using one of the tools to “polish” himself and make himself look even better.] Oh, darling! You….look….mahhhhh-velous!

GOD: [Appears] Hey, Brad! Whatcha doing?

Brad: [Embarrassed] Oh, uh… [Remembers mirror in his hand, looks at it briefly and then hides it behind his back] Nothing, really.

GOD: So, did you like what you saw?

Brad: Uh, well…yeah! Yeah! I guess I did! Is there anything wrong with that?

GOD: Who did you see when you looked in the mirror?

Brad: Well, me, of course!

GOD: That’s the problem. You see, Brad, what you’re supposed to is the image of my Son, Jesus.

GOD: We can take a break, but you should know that these areas grow bigger when you don’t let me work on them.

Brad: God, what’s the use? I’m never going to be like Jesus. He’s perfect, and I’m…I’m…I’m just messed up. I can’t be fixed.

GOD: Brad, what do you think I see when I look at you?

Brad: A disappointment.

GOD: Not at all! You know what I see? My masterpiece! My glorious creation! My beautiful, wonderful child! I’ve never made a piece of junk, and I never will. I only make masterpieces.

Brad: [Looking down at his feet and shuffling them on the ground] But I sin, God! I mess up! I do things I’m not supposed to do!

GOD: Brad, you can never be a disappointment to me, because my expectations for change in your life aren’t based on your efforts. I’m the one who is responsible for changing you. All you have to do is surrender. Trust me to do my work. I’ll take care of the rest.

Brad: Oh, God, that sounds great, and I want it to be true, but it seems too easy.

GOD: Oh, I never said it was going to be easy. Simple maybe, but it’s almost never easy. Trusting me takes lots of practice. Every day, you’re going to want to try to take the tools back in your hands and change yourself, but you’ve got to let me do the work.

Description
This game teaches that we have God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense (G.R.A.C.E.), but we have to keep returning to God every time we sin in order to keep the relationship strong. If we don’t, we wander further and further from God.

Audience
Children, youth

Materials
• Copies of the Grace or Guilt Gameboard (See the file, “God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense – Gameboard.ppt” on the “Lesson and Material Downloads” page.)
• Copies of “Grace Cards” (included at the end of this lesson text) – You will need a set for every group of six.
• A copy of the “Debrief Questions” at the end of this lesson. You will need one printout per group.
• Something to act as game pieces. You can use coins, torn pieces of paper, poker chips… You will need enough for all the children to have one.
• Dice (one per group)
• Optional – Prizes for the winners.

Preparation
• Print the “Grace or Guilt – Gameboard,” and tape the two pages end-to-end. You will need one gameboard for each group of up to six children.
• Print out a copy of the “Grace Cards” at the end of the lesson, and cut them out. Place them face down beside the gameboard.
• Print out a copy of the Debrief Question (one per group).
• Practice the script

Procedure
Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):
• “We’re going to play a game to help us understand how sin takes us away from God and the many blessings He wants us to have.”
• “It’s called, ‘God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.”
• “First, I’ll need to divide you into small groups.” (Divide children into small groups of no more than six each. Then, hand out the gameboards and game pieces.)
• “Here’s the way this game is played.
o First, you will all roll the die (singular for dice) to see who goes first. The highest role wins and goes first. The next-highest roll goes second and so on. If you get a tie, those people should re-roll until someone rolls a higher number.
o Players should put their game pieces on the paths that match their playing order. For example, Path 1 for the first player, Path 2 for the second, and so on.
o Next, you will roll the die to see how many spaces to move your game piece.
o Each player starts in the “God’s Riches” space.
o At the end of every turn, you will draw a card.
o The card has a letter (or letters) on it.
o You want to collect all the letters in the word, “GRACE.”
o It’s okay if you have extra letters, but you need to have at least one of each of the letters on your cards.
o If you get the right letters to spell, “GRACE,” you can return to the “God’s Riches” space.
o You should put any cards you used to spell “GRACE” in a discard pile. If the group draws all the card in the draw pile, the discard pile will be shuffled and used as the new draw pile.
o The game ends when someone rolls a number that forces them to move more spaces than are left on the path.
o The winner of the game is the person who is closest to “God’s Riches.”
o In the event of a tie, you can let the tied players roll again to see who is the closest to “God’s Riches” after the roll.”
• “Does anyone have questions about how you will play?” (Answer questions. Then, let them get started. When they are done, award a prize for the winners if you like, and hand out a copy of the Debrief Questions on the next page. Give groups ten minutes to discuss the debrief questions, and then talk with the entire group about their answers.)

Debrief Questions

o Why is the game called, “God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense?
o What are “God’s Riches?”
o What does “Christ’s Expense” mean?
o How is this game like our Christian walk?
o Read Proverbs 4:14-15. What do you think the spaces represented?
o Read Proverbs 4:26-27. What do you think it means?
o Grace allows us to return to God after we have sinned, but what do we actually need to do to return to Him?